World number two Rafael Nadal plays Aussie Thanasi Kokkinakis in the second round of the US Open Championships on Thursday, August 29. The timings of this match are yet to be confirmed. You can find the Rafael Nadal v Thanasi Kokkinakis live streaming options, preview and predictions here.
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Rafael Nadal v Thanasi Kokkinakis Head to Head
The two players have only met once, at the Australian Open in 2014, which Nadal won in straight sets.
Nadal Looking to Capitalize on Convincing Round One Outing
Three-time US Open champion Rafael Nadal got his 2019 campaign at the US Open off to a strong start with a 6-3,6-2,6-2 win over Aussie John Millman.
The Spaniard started convincingly and broke early in the first set and there was no looking back thereafter. His Australian opponent Millman is well remembered for defeating Roger Federer in the fourth round last year on the same court. But, there was none of the same to be seen this time around.
A 12-time French Open winner, Nadal has performed well in recent times on the outdoor hard courts, winning the ATP Masters 1000 in Montreal earlier this month.
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Kokkinakis Hoping To Make an Impact
23-year-old Thanas Kokkinakis sprung onto the ATP circuit in 2014 and has since been earmarked as one with immense talent and a factor to be in the years to come.
While Kokkinakis made a quick impact and moved up the rankings rapidly reaching a career high number 69 in 2015, he has had a career plagued with injuries that has seen him out for considerable amounts of time and is just ranked within the top 200 at the moment.
The Aussie has had some noteworthy victories against top 10 ranked players, none more than against Roger Federer in the opening round of the Miami Masters 1000 in 2018.
A mix of poor form and long injury lay-offs since, meant that until a win at Los Cabos this July where he had a wild card, Kokkinakis did not win an ATP level match in close to a year and a half.
The Aussie began his US Open with a four set win against Ilya Ivashka from Belarus.
Rafael Nadal v Thanasi Kokkinakis Predictions & Tips
Although the Australian Kokkinakis remains supremely talented and capable of pushing the best of players to the limit, Nadal will definitely begin as a strong favorite here.
The Aussie has mentioned that he believes he is capable of surprising Nadal, but given the form and match practice they are coming in with respectively, it is difficult to foresee him being a threat over a best of five set encounter.
Some good games and rallies and points, but expect Nadal to win in three straight sets.
Tip: Under 28.5 games in the match: 17/20 (888Sport)
The Rafael Nadal v Thanasi Kokkinakis match can be watched live with Unibet here on August 29, 2019. Also, get the latest tennis tips and predictions here.
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